ANA expands upgraded business class meals

Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) is expanding its collaboration with local chefs from many of its gateway cities to provide upgraded alternatives for meals in the carrier’s Business Class cabins.

New partners include the Taj Mahal Hotel for flights departing India, Jing An Shangri-La for flights departing Shanghai, and the Conrad New York for flights departing New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport (JFK). ANA will also be offering its first-ever Japanese cuisine collaboration on flights departing an overseas airport, with the introduction of in-flight meals from Tofuya Ukai on flights from Taiwan.

Business Class main course
In April, July and October 2016, routes from Shanghai (SHA) to Haneda (HND), Nagoya (NGO) and Kansai will accentuate the charm of Shangai through fare presented by the Summer Palace restaurant at the Jing An Shangri-La hotel. The restaurant serves southeastern Chinese cuisine with Cantonese flair.

On flights from Mumbai, India (BOM) to Japan, the airline has launched the collaboration with The Taj Mahal Palace, a well-regarded, historic 5-star hotel to provide traditional dishes that have been enjoyed by VIPs from around the world. Starting in March 2016, the cuisine will also be featured on flights departing Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi (DEL). The special meals will be served on both routes through November 2016.

During the summer of 2016, flights from JFK to Japan will feature meals designed in collaboration with the executive chef of the Mediterranean-inspired Atrio restaurant at the Conrad Hotel in New York. Those offerings will be available in June, July and August.

Business-class passengers on routes between Taiwan and Japan will be offered in-flight meals from Tofuya Ukai, an upmarket tofu restaurant of the Ukai Group, which operates high-end restaurants around the Tokyo area. Ukai special bean tofu soup, together with other signature tofu dishes and seasonal Japanese menus specially designed by Executive Chef, will be served in January, April and October 2016.

The addition of the collaboration partners expands a program that was launched in 2013 for flights from Taiwan and India and which was further expanded in Dec. 2014 with additional partners in Thailand, Singapore, China, Hong Kong and Los Angeles.

Port and cheese dessert in Business Class
ANA has consistently been well rated in the annual SKYTRAX World Airline Awards. In 2015, the carrier was named No. 4 of the World’s Best Business Class Airlines and No. 7 World’s Best Airline overall, No. 9 Best Business Class Catering (in-flight meals) and No. 4 Best Business Class Comfort Amenities.

I experienced ANA’s Business Class service aboard one of its Boeing (NYSE:BA) 787 Dreamliners and found business class to be outstanding. The service was extremely gracious and the food was excellent, .
as I reported here

Whenever I travel internationally, I prefer to fly a carrier based in the country of my destination and prefer the regional cuisine to help set my mood. ANA’s culinary collaboration seems just the thing to help set your mood when flying to or from one of the airline’s select destinations.

Visit my main page at TheTravelPro.us for more news, reviews, and personal observations on the world of upmarket travel.



Photos by Carl Dombek
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